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PRYOR, OK — The powerful, dramatic, diverse and electrifying Queensryche has joined Rocklahoma’s already historic line-up. Queensryche joined the Rocklahoma’s line-up following unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances that prevented W.A.S.P. from appearing on Sunday, July 15 at the four-day festival, explained Mark Nuessle, General Manager of Catch the Fever Music Festivals.

“We are so fortunate to have a band of such high-quality and popularity of Queensryche to step in to the vacancy left by W.A.S.P.,” said Nuessle. “Queensryche is an awesome band to add to this line-up — especially just prior to their Fall tour with Alice Cooper and Heaven and Hell.”

Queensryche, out of Seattle, is considered by many critics to be the original band that began the “Seattle Sound” that produced such groups as Nirvana and Pearl Jam. More than two decades after Queensryche’s inception, they have sold over 20 million albums, numerous hits and have consistently toured in over 22 countries world wide. Nominated for four Grammy Awards, their music has been featured in three films.

“When you look at their history and realize they’ve toured with groups such as Motley Crue, Metallica, KISS, and Bon Jovi — that they’ve had numerous Billboard hits that have remained on the charts for long periods of time worldwide — it just makes it that much more exciting that they have decided to join Rocklahoma,” said Nuessle.

The announcement of Queensryche joining Rocklahoma’s line-up will only push already-record ticket sales higher. Fans can save up to 25% on their tickets by purchasing them before Tuesday, June 26th.

“This is the last chance for fans of 80’s rock to see the largest gathering of this kind to get their discount tickets,” said Nuessle. “If they want to be a part of rock history, this is their chance.”

Tickets have sold worldwide for Rocklahoma and have been sold across six continents and throughout the United States, making Rocklahoma one of the most successful music festivals across the United States and is a part of Oklahoma’s Centennial Celebration as 80’s rock fans will converge on the state from locations as far away as Japan, Australia and South Africa.

ROCKLAHOMA, an official Oklahoma Centennial event presented by Rock Fever and Miller Lite, will be held July 12-15, 2007, at the Catch the Fever Festival Grounds four miles north of Pryor, OK just off highway 69.

Tickets prices will increase on Tuesday, June 26th, so fans are encouraged to get their tickets now to ROCKLAHOMA! Tickets are on sale and available by calling toll free (866) 310-2288 or online at http://www.rockfeverfest.com. Tickets through June 25th are as follows:

Rocklahoma has gone Mobile! If you want your information before anyone else, text Rock to 46786 or go online at http://www.rockfeverfest.com to receive special offers, promotions, news and updates directly to your mobile phone..

The new TIGERTAILZ album THRILL PISTOL is now fully mixed and complete. Pepsi has also completed all artwork and a snapshot of the new album cover is shown above. THRILL PISTOL will be released in August/September 2007 on SANCTUARY RECORDS.

The final track listing (in no particular order) is as follows:

- Brain The Sucker
– Long Live The New Flesh
– Twisted
– Thrill Pistol
– Miles Away
– She’z So Wild
– Only You
– Hanging By The Heels
– Serpent Queen

THRILL PISTOL will be a double CD pack that will also include a ‘bonus’ disc of the original WAZBONES album which was originally recorded in 1991 but never officially released.

MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars flew into Stockholm, Sweden earlier this week to help Swedish/Finnish “glam rockers” CRASHDIET write some songs for their upcoming album. No less than three songs were cut for the as-yet-untitled CD, which is scheduled for release in September via Universal Records.

CRASHDIET recently entered a studio in Sundsvall, Sweden to begin recording its second album, tentatively due later in the year.

CRASHDIET’s debut live appearance with their new singer, H. Olliver Twisted (of the Finnish hard rock act RECKLESS LOVE) took place on January 21 at the Rest in Sleaze festival at Debaser in Stockholm, Sweden.

H. Olliver Twisted joined CRASHDIET as the replacement for David Hellman (a.k.a. Dave Lepard), who committed suicide in January 2006.

Hellman was found dead on January 20, 2006 at his apartment in the Swedish city of Uppsala, north of Stockholm. It was reported in several places that he hanged himself, although this was never officially confirmed.

CRASHDIET is a Stockholm, Sweden-based Eighties hard rock-style band whose debut album, “Rest in Sleaze”, entered the Swedish national album chart at position No. 12.

CRASHDIET is reportedly the first “sleaze rock” band in over 10 years to be signed directly to a major company — Universal Music.

Comment: This is very cool news! Crash Diet is a great band, and Mick Mars will only help them make a better CD. Yea!

Due to popular demand, Gypsy Pistoleros (the fastest rising rock group in the UK) will now open Rocklahoma, the biggest ever Glam Festival in the World, on Thursday 12 July.

Because of the overwhelming response from the music community, a fourth day has been added to Rocklahoma.

“The evening of Thursday, July 12th was simply added because the fans and the bands demanded it” said Dave Giencke, director of operations of the Pryor Creek Music Festival. Tiger Tailz, one of Great Britain’s greatest glam rock bands along with Great Britain’s Gypsy Pistoleros were added.

“It’s exciting to see bands from all over the globe excited to be playing at Rocklahoma” said Giencke.

Also playing on Thursday is KISS Army, the only KISS tribute band personally endorsed by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley and Hollywood Roses, a Los Angeles, CA based band that pays tribute to one of the eighties top bands, Guns and Roses. In addition there will be a special jam performance by some of the ’80’s greatest musicians.

Rocklahoma is the largest ’80’s rock festival of its kind ever to be organized and Festival goers who purchased three-day tickets will also be able to attend Thursday evening’s performance. While the VIP amenities are good for only Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Thursday’s party is one that no one will want to miss.

“We’re totally enthusiastic about offering an opportunity – an appetizer, if you will – to Rocklahoma fans on Thursday night,” said Mark Nuessle, General Manager of Catch the Fever Music Festivals. “Thursday evening will set the stage for a weekend filled with phenomenal 80’s bands and the greatest reunion of this era’s bands ever organized.”

Twenty-nine bands are scheduled to play during the now-four-day festival.
Tickets have sold worldwide for Rocklahoma and have been sold across six continents and throughout the United States, making Rocklahoma one of the most successful music festivals across the United States and is a part of Oklahoma’s Centennial Celebration as ’80’s rock fans will converge on the state from locations as far away as Japan, Australia and South Africa.

Rocklahoma, an official Oklahoma Centennial event presented by Rock Fever and Miller Lite, will be held July 12 to 15, 2007, at the Catch the Fever Festival Grounds four miles north of Pryor, Oklahoma, just off highway 69.

Tickets prices will increase on Monday, June 25th, so fans are encouraged to get their tickets now. Tickets are available from Rockfeverfest.com.

There are still thousands of hotel rooms within thirty five minutes of the festival site in Tulsa and surrounding areas. For a nominal fee, people are encouraged to camp just a short walk from the festival site.

According to The Def Leppard Satellite Of Love, DEF LEPPARD will reunite with producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange after the tour is over to write a few songs for the new album, “Songs from the Sparkle Lounge”, it was revealed on the June 20 edition of “Rockline”.

“He’s very enthusiastic actually,” bassist Rick Savage told the listeners of “Rockline”. “He’s just heard a few ideas that we had knocking around and he really wants to do a couple things with us, which is great after all this time that we’ve known him for him to still dig what we’re doing and there still that chemistry there for future songs.”

The collaboration would be the first between the band and Mutt Lange since 1999’s “Euphoria” album.

According to Billboard.com, DEF LEPPARD is “about 85, 90 percent finished” with its next CD, which frontman Joe Elliott describes as “a very rock album.”

“I’m not gonna say it’s radically different to anything we’ve ever done,” Elliott told Billboard.com. “There’s classic DEF LEPPARD. There’s stuff that sounds like it’s going back to the middle, late-’70s AC/DC and new wave-type sounding stuff. There’s definitely some moments on it where anybody that’s familiar with our music will go, ‘Whoa! I wasn’t expecting that!’ We’ve just been very adventurous, musically, on certain numbers.”

Elliott said the “Sparkle Lounge” album title refers to a room the group maintained backstage during its 2006 tour dates, where the musicians would congregate with co-producer and live sound technician Ronan McHugh to work up and record ideas.

Further solidifying its place as one the world’s leading rock acts, LINKIN PARK’s third studio release, “Minutes to Midnight”, has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales exceeding 1 million copies in the U.S. in just 4 weeks. “Minutes to Midnight” debuted at #1 and sold 623,996 copies in its first week alone, making it the highest debut of the year. “It’s not a stretch to say that they could be the biggest act on the planet,” says James Montgomery of MTV.

“Minutes To Midnight” has already shipped over 3.3 million worldwide. The album has reached #1 in 32 countries and is certified platinum in 16 countries.

LINKIN PARK will kick off its Projekt Revolution tour on July 25 in Auburn, WA, zigzagging the nation with a final stop in Englewood, CO. This year’s lineup includes LINKIN PARK, MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, TAKING BACK SUNDAY, H.I.M., PLACEBO and JULIEN-K on the Main Stage and MINDLESS SELF INDULGENCE, SAOSIN, THE BLED, STYLES OF BEYOND and MADINA LAKE on the Revolution Stage.

In addition to Projekt Revolution, LINKIN PARK will also headline the Tokyo portion of this summer’s Live Earth concert series. This 24-hour, 7-continenent, worldwide event taking place on July 7, 2007 will raise awareness of the global climate crisis. Over 100 artists, including SNOOP DOGG, CHRIS CORNELL, SMASHING PUMPKINS, FALL OUT BOY and SHERYL CROW, will perform in the concert series which is expected to reach over 2 million people worldwide.

If you have ever visited the Hard Rock Hideout, you probably know that I am fan of Jorn Lande.

Jorn Lande returns with his third disc in 2007 alone. The Revenge is the second collaberation with singer Russell Allen from Symphony X, and guitarist Magnus Karlsson from Last Tribe.

The first disc, The Battlewas fantastic, so all of the musicians involved would have to truly raise the bar to surpass that disc. I don’t think the Revenge surpasses The Battle, but it is pretty close to being equal to its predecessor.

Magnus Karlsson once again shows off his superb song writing skills. Without any question, I knew I would be listening to a superior vocal performance from Allen and Lande, and I was right. On six of the tracks both Allen and Lande share the vocals. The other six are split evenly between the two.

This disc starts off with an awesome track, Revenge. This song has a very cool groove with excellent keyboard melodies. Jorn Lande and Russell Allen both sound great. The keyboard parts on this song remind me of Whitesnake.

Obsessed is Russell Allen’s first solo track on this disc. Allen shows off his amazing voice on this heavy, melodic rocker. This is a damn good song.

Victory has a lighter feel to itat first with some lighter guitar picking, but then blasts off with some full out crunching metal. Lande’s powerful pipes shine through on this track. This is another cool song!

Master of Sorrow is Jorn’s first solo song on the disc. This is a balladesque song with lots of great piano and guitar work by Magnus Karlsson. This is one of my favorite songs off of the The Revenge. Jorn’s phenomenal voice shines here.

Will You Follow is Russell Allen’s 2nd solo track. This is a superb, high tempo rocker that sometimes ventures into Survivor like territory. Karlsson’s heavy guitars are a good match with Russell Allen’s voice. I enjoyed Karlsson’s guitar noodling on this song.

Just A Dream is another song with the dualing vocals of Allen and Lande. This was the first song that I couldn’t really get into. The music is good, but there are more progressive elements in this song, and it seems to lack the cohesiveness that the songs before it possess.

Her Spell is Jorn’s second solo track. I have listened to this song a few times now, and for whatever reason, I can’t get into this song. I can’t put my finger on it, but there are better songs on The Revenge than this one.

Gone Too Far is the third solo effort by Russell Allen, and probably his best. This is the type of song that will keep me coming back for more collaberations with Magnus Karlsson. This is about as good as melodic rock will ever get. Great Stuff!

Wake Up Call is a powerful rock anthem, that had me headbanging from the start.

Under The Waves is the final solo output from Jorn Lande. This song is much better than Her Spell, and a close second to Master of Sorrow. Jorn’s vocals are more low key on this song, but he still sounds very good.

Who Can You Trust is one of the heavier songs on The Revenge. This is another standout effort from Lande, Allen and Karlsson. If you don’t like this track on the first listen, your speakers must be broke.

When Time Doesn’t Heal should be essential listening to all hard rock fans. This track is an exceptional ballad, and a pretty impressive way to close out The Revenge.

Once again, Allen and Lande deliver again with another great melodic rock disc. This one is worthy pickup for any hard rock fans. You can check out more of Allen Lande’s music from Revenge at their myspace page here. The CD is available for purchase through CD Inzane and Impulse Music. You can also listen to two of the songs below!

The Revenge -

Master of Sorrow -

Rating:Out of 10

Track Listing:
1. The Revenge
2. Obsessed
3. Victory
4. Master Of Sorrow
5. Will You Follow
6. Just A Dream
7. Her Spell
8. Gone Too Far
9. Wake Up Call
10. Under The Waves
11. Who Can You Trust
12. When Time Doesn’t Heal

Evans Blue have launched a series of video clips giving their fans a behind-the-scenes look at the making of their new album. With the second installment, Evans Blue talk about their favorite tours so far and what life on the road is like. Evans Blue will release their second record, The Pursuit Begins When This portrayal Of Life Ends, on July 24th.

A quote from Bret Michaels from the Observer Reporter states” Poison will probably release another album of new material, but it probably won’t arrive until 2009, according to Michaels. In the meantime, Michaels, a 44-year-old Butler native, has been busy with his own solo career. So far, he’s released two albums of country, rock and Americana, and has a third one, already titled “Custom Built,” in the works. An occasional film director and producer, he also is planning “Between a Rose and a Thorn,” a movie based on his life.”

Ratt’s Bobby Blotzer called KNAC.COM’s Diana Deville from Birmingham, AL on Saturday 6/16 from the Poison tour, where Vains of Jenna had not yet joined, but would be jumping on the tour in North Carolina. That night they were playing a festival on the City Stages with several bands, including Lynam.

Here’s Diana’s recap from this past week’s conversation with Blotzer on her show, The Wild Side:

“Blotzer said the band had had about 4-5 live shows under their belt now and that everything was going well. They had some monitor problems, and he was really impressed with how they handled the technical difficulties and did the show.

They’re doing some deep cuts in the set, such as “Closer to My Heart”, which is one of Bobby’s favorites that he’s been trying to get into the set for a while. When asked about how to pick the setlist, he said, “That is an excellent question, because you have 5 guys who have completely different ideas about what should get into the set. Of course you have to play the hits, and then we vote on it and our management breaks the tie, if there is one.”

When asked about touring with Poison and the two bands being two of 80’s rock mainstays, he said, “We always have a great time with those guys. I’ve stayed in touch with them…I live about 4 miles from Rikki [Rockett} and I always see him at the grocery store…We took Poison out in 1987 when they were first breaking out, and we’ve had a blast with them ever since. We love touring with them, and we get along great.”

On Stephen Pearcy’s return to the band, replacing Jizzy Pearl, who was in the band for 7 years, he said, “Jizzy was great, and we had a lot of fun with him, but it was just time to come full circle. We’re very happy to have Stephen back in the band, and things are going great. He’s stepping up to the plate, singing great, and we’re very happy with the way the shows are going.”

He also admitted that he and Warren DeMartini had been talking to Stephen for quite a while before the reunion was announced. There were many things that needed to be worked out, and Bobby said, “This isn’t just a matter of going out, doing the tour, grabbing the money and then walking away. We are in this for the long haul.”

I knew there had been a LOT of bad blood between them, so I asked, “what did it take to bring the three of you back together again?”. Bobby laughed and said, “I don’t want to touch too deeply on that, but it took a LOT, and many time, our new management (Sanctuary) acted as a buffer between us. There was a lot of clearing the air, and clearing up misunderstandings to make it work.”

Juan Crocier was also involved in the initial reunion talks, and when asked about his non-participation in the reunion, Bobby said, “We talked and talked and we really wanted it to happen, but Juan was on a different page and it didn’t work out. We’ve had Robbie (Crane, current bassist) in the band for over ten years now, and we love playing with him as well.”

Bobby said that after the Poison tour wraps in September, there were plans to go to Japan for some shows, and then to do a headline tour in the US in September/October. Also, Ratt plans to start writing for an album of new material to be released sometime in 2008, and there is also a Greatest Hits CD and a DVD of Ratt videos to be released later this year as well. Bobby moved to Houston about two years ago, and opened his own recording studio, Diamond Recording Studios (http://www.diamondrecordingstudio.com) , with his partner Gregg Gill, and has started producing some of his own acts, such as up and comers FlickStick, and Mercury Down, as well as a side project Blotzer performs on, Saints of the Underground, with Jani Lane (ex-Warrant) and Keri Kelli (Alice Cooper).

He also mentioned the Tawn Mastrey (Former KNAC FM Air Personality) benefit drive, and urged people to get involved to donate money. I mentioned that we had updates on the news section, and that we were planning to be involved in the movement.

An Interview with Frank Hannon at Blasting-Zone.com revealed the following:

Blasting-Zone.com: Can your fans expect a new TESLA studio album in 2008?

Frank: “You can definitely expect one by summertime or the end of 2008. I’ve got about twenty five new riffs, ideas and arrangements that I’m working on. I know we all have a bunch…it’s just a matter of finding the time when we’re not out of tour to get together and spend two weeks recording demos. Then we’ll take time away from that, let Jeff chew on ‘em and write lyrics, then, two weeks after that, we’ll take another two weeks and put everything together, ya know? We work in like two week increments.”

***************************************************************************W.A.S.P. has cancelled its previously announced appearance at the Rocklahoma festival, set to take place July 12-15, at the Catch The Fever Festival Grounds, four miles north of Pryor, Oklahoma, just off highway 69. A replacement act has not yet been announced.

W.A.S.P. recently called off its U.S. tour (which included ALABAMA THUNDERPUSSY on many of the dates) “due to its North American label losing its distribution,” according to a posting on the band’s web site. The tour will be rescheduled to a later undisclosed date.

MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee’s attorney Barbara Berkowitz has issued the following statement in regard to the lawsuit filed by the band against Lee’s manager Carl Stubner and companies he is associated with:

“I am general counsel for Tommy Lee. Tommy Lee is not an individual participant in the lawsuit filed Monday by the corporation, Motley Crue, Inc. against Lee’s personal manager, Carl Stubner and Sanctuary Management. Mr. Stubner and Sanctuary do not manage MÖTLEY CRÜE, however they continue to represent Tommy Lee personally.

“Mr. Lee was neither consulted regarding this matter nor authorized the lawsuit. Mr. Lee has not made any allegations against his current personal manager. Mr. Lee feels fortunate to have been part of the MÖTLEY reunion tour, as well as other opportunities outside of MÖTLEY CRÜE over the past several years. It is unfortunate that others believe that they all could have made more money had Mr. Lee exclusively participated in the band that he co-founded in 1980. However, Mr. Lee is a versatile artist, and is grateful that he participated in other projects as well.”

In the lawsuit, filed Monday (June 18) in Los Angeles County Superior Court, members of the band through Motley Crue Inc., claim Stubner forced Tommy Lee to “to become engaged in ‘reality’ projects that were bad career moves for Lee, harming [Sixx, Mars, Neil and Lee], the MÖTLEY CRÜE brand and Lee’s own image.” According to TMZ.com, the suit calls the low-rated NBC show “Tommy Lee Goes to College” a “critical disappointment and a ratings disaster,” adding it painted Lee as “incoherent, lazy and incompetent” and made him “look like a laughing stock who could not carry a drum beat.” The suit also claims Lee’s participation on “Rock Star: Supernova” “diminished the public’s interest in Lee and their overall perception of his musical talents.”

Because Lee was so busy doing reality TV, the band says he was unavailable to tour with the CRÜE, thus causing the cancellation of several key concert dates. The band claims that they lost $8 million in ticket and merchandise revenue because of Lee’s scheduling conflicts. The band claims these conflicts were “both real and concocted” by Stubner to “leverage his control over Lee to his financial advantage and to MÖTLEY CRÜE and Lee’s detriment.”

Trapt launched the world premiere of their new song, “Stay Alive,” today exclusively on Ultimate-Guitar.com. The track is the first single off the band’s upcoming live album that will hit stores on August 21st. Ultimate-Guitar.com was able to secure an exclusive interview with the band to discuss the live album and plans for Trapt to hit the studio later this year to record a new album. Also, in the coming months the band will release 9 live videos that fans can download for free.

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“Bastards”, the new single from Swedish sleaze rockers HARDCORE SUPERSTAR, has been certified gold in Sweden, according to the band’s label, Gain Music Entertainment. You can listen to the track on the group’s MySpace page.

The “Bastards” single was released in Sweden on June 6 via Gain. A demo version of another new song, entitled “Sophisticated Ladies”, is also available on the band’s MySpace page. The track comes off the group’s recently recorded 14-song demo of material that will appear on the band’s upcoming studio album. Other new songtitles include “Lesson in Violence”, “Sensitive to the Light” and “Dreamin’ in a Casket”. The new full-length CD is expected to surface in the fall.

HARDCORE SUPERSTAR released a live DVD, entitled “Live Zone”, in June 2006 via Pan Vision. The disc features a recording of the band’s live performance on March 25, 2006 at Sticky Fingers in Gothenburg, Sweden.

HARDCORE SUPERSTAR’s latest, self-titled effort was released in Sweden in early November 2005 on the Gain label.

Last night, My Wife and I attended the Vains of Jenna, RATT and Poison Concert. It has been a long time since I have seen Stephen Pearcy play live with RATT, and I was really looking foward to the show.

Once upon a time, in 1986, Poison opened up for RATT at this same site. Poison was a new band, and hungry. They were out opening up for RATT in support of their new disc, Look What the Cat Dragged In. They were good that night, but RATT completely blew them off the stage.

Fast Forward to 2007, and last night’s show.

Vains of Jenna opened the show, and were decked out in their fully glam outfits. I have only listened to a couple of their songs prior to last night, so I was not very familiar with their music. They mentioned the last time they played in Cincinnati, and the incident at Rhino’s in Eastgate. They dedicated their song, “Don’t Give A Damn” to the club manager there. They also did a cover of the Tom Petty song, Refugee. I enjoyed their short 30 minute set. I will be seeking out their CD soon.

At about 8 P.M., RATT took the stage with their new linuep of Robbie Crane on bass, John Corabi on rhythm guitar, Stephen Pearcy on vocals, Bobby Blotzer on drums and guitar god, Warren Dimartini. RATT played most of their hit songs, and a few songs that made me wonder what they were thinking. I was surprised to hear anything off of their self titled record from 1999, but they played more than one song off of this disc. The crowd reaction when these songs were played was similar to mine. What the *#@% was that? Considering that they only have an hour long slot, why they would waste their time playing these lesser known tunes, that quite frankly, are not very good. I will say that the band was good, but no where near as good as the original lineup. I didn’t think Stephen Pearcy sounded as good as he used to, and Bobby Blotzer, actually messed up the drum beat in one of the songs. Dimartini’s playing was the highlight in this time slot.

I have seen Poison play live several times in the past and my expectations were low. I had high hopes for RATT, and they disappointed me somewhat. I have seen Poison play with a bunch of different bands, insert name here, and never thought they were as good as some of the acts they have toured with. Last night, they totally changed my mind.

Poisontook the stage at around 9:30 P.M. and from the very beginning, I knew they were going to be great. They played a few songs off of their new covers disc, Poison’d, as well their hits over the years. Regardless of how I feel about their covers album, the songs they played live sounded great. This was an extemely high energy show, and everyone in the band played extremely well including Bret Michaels. There were a few surprises in the show that drummer Rikki Rockett had up his sleeve that made me think about the Motley Crue, Girls, Girls Girls tour.

This was one of the best Poison shows that I have ever seen, and I have seen quite a few. Poison blew RATT off the stage, and had smiles on the faces of just about everyone who the packed house last night.

If they come to your town, go check them out! You wont be disappointed!

For those of you who didn’t have the Black Sabbath (or Heaven and Hell if you prefer) tour roll through your town during its first leg with Megadeth, You now have a reason to rejoice! Black Sabbath is announcing new dates with Queensryche and shock rocker, Alice Cooper!!

Following the group’s successful spring tour, HEAVEN AND HELL will again wow American audiences with its bewitching stage set and truly timeless, classic metal as Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice return for the second U.S. leg of the quartet’s continuing world tour. Set to launch on September 5, HEAVEN AND HELL’s tour will stop in many cities not included on the previous leg and will feature opening sets from ALICE COOPER and QUEENSRŸCHE. Tickets for the first 12 dates will go on sale the weekend of June 22 with more dates to be announced soon. There will also be a special fan presale for the first dates beginning Wednesday, June 20 at 12 Noon EDT at heavenandhell.frontgatetickets.com.

Last year, the iconic quartet reconvened to record a trio of songs for “Black Sabbath: The Dio Years”, a compilation that features essential songs by the short-lived, but beloved incarnation of BLACK SABBATH fronted by Dio. Dubbing the group HEAVEN AND HELL after one of its signature hits, the band launched a much-anticipated world tour earlier this year. The group celebrated its first U.S. concert in 15 years with a sold-out performance at Radio City Music Hall. Recorded and filmed in its entirety, Rhino captured the historic concert for a CD and DVD release, “Heaven And Hell Live From Radio City Music Hall”, set for an August 28 release.

ALICE COOPER and QUEENSRŸCHE will join HEAVEN AND HELL on the road this fall creating one of the year’s hardest-hitting triple bills. In addition to his duties as a rock ‘n’ roll icon, Cooper is the host of the syndicated “Nights With Alice Cooper” radio show. Cooper’s autobiography, “Alice Cooper, Golf Monster”, was released last month. QUEENSRŸCHE is riding high on the success of last year’s “Operation: Mindcrime II” album and tour, which brought the group’s complete “Mindcrime” saga to the stage in its entirety. On July 3, Rhino will release CD and DVD versions of “Mindcrime At The Moore”, which feature QUEENSRŸCHE’s performance in front of its hometown crowd at Moore Theatre in Seattle.

Like it, or hate it, American Idol is a pop culture that is here to stay. Before the last season of American Idol started, there were rumors that the Producers were looking to weed out the rock singers in the competition, as they wanted American Idol to be a true Pop Singer contest. Whether this was true or not, I do not know, but the lack of rock singers in Season 6, led me to believe it was correct.

To Me, Season 6, was just about unwatchable. I am not saying that the contestants this past year were not talented. There were certainly a few good singers in Season 6, but the competition was uninteresting.

I saw a news byte today that Ari Koivunen, winner of Finnish Idol, has a released a new video for his CD, Fuel to the Fire.

After watching this video for the new track Hear My Call, it made me wonder, how is it that a country that has a population smaller than the city of Atlanta, can produce talent like this, and the entire United States can not.

Dilana Robichaux may have finished as a runner-up while competing on Rock Star: Supernova, but she’s making sure her fans across the globe can still have access to her music.

The 34-year-old South African singer and songwriter has signed a “worldwide, long term, co-publishing agreement” with Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company Inc. and is currently in a Los Angeles studio working with Motley Crue guitarist Mick Mars on material for an upcoming album.

“I am ecstatic about being adopted by Cherry Lane,” said Robichaux. “I believe their vision for my career and success in this tough business mirrors my own. They love me and believe in me – that’s always a perfect recipe for inspiration! My future looks bright with my new family!”

Rock Star: Supernova fans immediately took a liking to Robichaux when the CBS reality competition series premiered last June, as her multi-colored hair and vocal abilities helped her stand-out and become the only female featured during the show’s finale. While ex-Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee, former Metallica bass player Jason Newsted and ex-Guns N’ Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke chose Lukas Rossi to front their new band Rock Star: Supernova, Robichaux didn’t go away empty handed — she was invited to perform with the house band on the new group’s upcoming world tour, which she did before opening for Aerosmith in Las Vegas this past April.

“Anyone who has heard Dilana sing knows she is a rock star in the purest sense,” said Richard Stumpf, Cherry Lane’s senior vice president of Creative Services and Marketing. “She blew the doors off of the CBS Rock Star: Supernova competition and was the star of the subsequent tour. In our efforts to sign the best of the best, Dilana is right at home in the Cherry Lane family. We are currently working with Dilana on her album and can’t wait for her fans to listen to the amazing music she is creating.”

Robichaux’s upcoming album will be released on her newly created Rusty Harp record label, with Cherry Lane handling a portion of its copyrights for use in both America and abroad, the website CMJ.com recently reported.

“Cherry Lane has been an utter joy to work with,” said Robichaux’s manager Jimmy Stewart. “They are great people with an excellent understanding of today’s publishing world. The care and attention they’ve shown to Dilana has been quite astounding by traditional industry standards!”

The band Nocturnal Rites is a Power Metal band from Sweden. I didn’t know about these guys until recently and was pleasantly surprised by this release.

Their 8th release, The 8th Sin, this is more of progressive rock disc, than power metal. The songs range from heavy rockers to great ballads.

After listening to this disc a couple of times, I would compare the sound of this to the new one by Thunderstone and would say that this is even better than the new Masterplan disc, MKII.

Nocturnal Rites features the outstanding vocals of Jonny Lindkvist ,the excellent tandem of Fredrik Mannberg on rhythm guitar, and Nils Norberg on lead guitar, Nils Eriksson on bass, Owe Lingvall on drums, and Henrik Kjellberg on the keyboards.

The 8th Sin does not have a bad song on the disc, but the songs I enjoyed the most are the hard rocking songs Call Out to the World, Never Again, Tell Me, Not Like You, and the beautiful piano ballad, Me.

Never Again

After listening to this CD, I must once again say that Swedish metal kicks ass! The 8th Sin is a great disc, and worthy of owning. You can hear more of Nocturnal Rites at their myspace page and can find their new CD on sale at Impulse Music. Go Buy It!!

Rating: Out of 10

Track Listing:
1. Call out to the World
2. Never Again
3. Not the Only
4. Tell Me
5. Not Like You
6. Leave Me Alone
7. Till I Come Alive
8. Strong Enough
9. Me
10. Pain & Pleasure
11. Fools Parade

XYZ singerTerry Ilous has just released “Here And Gone”, a new compilation containing 18 rare tracks from his solo years and with XYZ, featuring current or former members of OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK SABBATH, STING, XYZ, DOKKEN, SCORPIONS, AC/DC, DAVID BOWIE, STEVE MILLER BAND, and many more.

Comented Ilous: “I was fortunate enough to record these tracks with some exceptional players, engineers, and producers throughout the years. Several of these tracks were originally recorded long ago for CD releases that never saw the light of the day, while others, recorded more recently as soundtracks for movies and TV.

“The translation behind the Japanese writing on the CD is ‘Bushido’, meaning ‘The way of the Samurai.’ I chose this to represent my musical path so far, which has been a tough road filled with many challenges, sacrifices, and its share of disappointments and sadness, yet so full of joy. Truly, an unbelievable journey that took one outcast foreigner all the way to Hollywood for the real American rock and roll dream!

“I just wanted to share some of those moments in time with my friends and fans from all over the world that I have been lucky enough to touch and connect with in some way through my music.”

Atreyu have announced that their new album, Lead Sails Paper Anchor, will hit stores August 28th. Lead Sails Paper Anchor is the bands fourth album and major label debut on Hollywood Records. Recently the band posted a game on their website featuring the first single off the album, “Becoming the Bull.” The game challenges their fans to put “Becoming the Bull” back together, with the fastest time winning a prize package that includes an autographed guitar and a copy of the album before it hits the streets. Atreyu will hit the road this summer with Korn and Evanescence on the Family Values tour.

POISON front man Bret Michaels will be Alice Cooper’s special guest on Cooper’s
radio show ‘Nights with Alice Cooper’ airing Thursday, June 21. The program is a
classic-rock format and is nationally syndicated on the United Stations Radio
Networks. Air times differ, so make sure to check local listings.

Go to WWW.NIGHTSWITHALICECOOPER.COM for more information
On the show,Michaels talks candidly about his band Poison.
One of rock’s most iconic and enduring bands, Poison returned to Billboard’s Top
200 Albums chart last week with the #32 debut of their new EMI America
Records/Capitol release, POISON’D!, selling more than 22 thousand units it’s
first week alone.
Poison will hit more than 50 U.S. cities this summer on their “POISON’D! 2007″
tour including stops in and around New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston,
Detroit, Washington, DC and other major tour markets across the country.
Juggling Bret’s tour and new release, this tireless superstar front man will
star in a 10-part reality series “Rock of Love With Bret Michaels” which starts
airing on VH-1 on July 1st.

On Friday Night, I caught the opening night release of the new movie, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

In this movie, the entire cast has returned for the sequel. Ioan Gruffudd does an excellent job as Mr. Fantastic. Chris Evans personifies the The Human Torch quite well. Michael Chiklis makes a great Thing. When Jessica Alba was cast as the Invisible Woman in the first movie, I was in disbelief. I am sure she was cast to be the movie’s eye candy, but in all reality, I can’t get over the fake blonde hair, and blue contacts hiding her natural appearance. She does the best she can as Sue Storm (The Invisible Woman), but she does not work for me in this role.

I have enjoyed Julian McMahon in his role on the TV show Nip/Tuck, but did not like his character as Dr. Doom in the first movie, and in this new movie, it almost seems as if they were trying to figure out a way to write him into the script.

The Good: The Special Effects were great. The new character in this film, The Silver Surfer (voiced by Laurence Fishburne) , was handled very well, and his story was right out of the comic books. There was plenty of humor and action in the film, and it moves pretty quickly. The cast all did a fine job.

The Bad: The story could have been so much better than it was, and the movie’s big climax, was a total let down. If they would have removed Dr. Doom out of the picture, and focused on the Silver Surfer’s story, it would have been much better.

I would be surprised if this movie surpasses Ghost Rider’s sales numbers ($115,802,976.00) from earlier in the year. I found that movie more enjoyable than this one.

Professionally filmed video footage of VELVET REVOLVER performing at the Download festival on June 8, 2007 at Donington Park, Leicestershire, England is available for viewing at YouTube.

An eight-minute video interview with VELVET REVOLVER frontman Scott Weiland and drummer Matt Sorum, which aired on June 6 on Canada’s “The Hour”, is available for viewing at this location.

The German branch of Sony BMG has uploaded audio samples of three of the tracks that are featured on VELVET REVOLVER’s European EP, “Melody and the Tyranny”, which was released on June 1. The EP contains two tracks from the band’s new CD, “Libertad”, as well as TALKING HEADS cover “Psycho Killer” (which was recorded during the “Libertad” sessions) and a video documentary about the making of “Libertad”.

“Libertad” will be released on July 3 in two formats: a CD version, which will also include the documentary, and a CD/DVD version, which will feature a bonus DVD with a 30-minute documentary about the 2007 South American tour.

ALICE IN CHAINS is writing songs for its first new studio album in 12 years, according to a source close to the band. A person named “the Baldy,” who says his job is “to travel the world with ALICE IN CHAINS and send photos, videos and blog entries back to (the webmasters) at AliceInChains.com,” recently provided this update: “I’ve been (in Los Angeles) for five days, sat through three rehearsals and one demo recording session, listened to several other demos, and I can happily report that the new stuff is kicking my ass right out of my pants.” There is no word on whether William DuVall, who sang with the group on last year’s reunion tour, is also handing vocals for the new material, and there’s also no official info on when an album might be released.

Guitarist Jerry Cantrell, drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Inez reunited in 2005 at a tsunami benefit in Seattle before heading out last year on full European and North American tours with DuVall singing.

Cantrell told Launch last year that while new music wasn’t out of the question, the band wasn’t ready to commit to anything. “It’s gonna be cool to see what happens,” he said. “I’m just really excited about the possibilities, ’cause there’s a lot of possibilities open. And that’s a pretty cool place to start and it’s a good place to just leave it there, rather than just making a bunch of claims of what we’re gonna do and not living up to them (laughs).”

ALICE IN CHAINS performed at the second annual “VH1 Rock Honors”, which was taped on May 12 in Las Vegas. This year’s show honored OZZY OSBOURNE, HEART, GENESIS and ZZ TOP, with performances and tributes from QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, NICKELBACK, KEANE and others.

Overture of the Wicked is a 4 track EP, which is a precursor of sorts for Iced Earth’s new CD, FRAMING ARMAGEDDON (Something Wicked Part 1), that is due later in 2007.

If the new CD sounds anything like this EP, sign me up for a copy now! Ripper Owens voice sounds stronger than ever, and the 4 songs on this disc absolutely rock! The guitars of Jon Schaffer and Tim Mills are tight as can be, and Brent Smedley’s Machine Gun style doublen bass drumming is awesome!

Overture of the Wicked is tasty appetizer for Iced Earth’s up and coming CD. Based on what I have heard here, Iced Earth is going to be a band to watch in 2007. They are about to have a breakout year!

If you have enjoyed any of Ripper Owens vocals in the past, you need to get this! You can hear the track Ten Thousand Years below.

Former AC/DC Front man Dave Evans, has been rocking hard for over 30 years now, and yet people in the United States are just getting to know this talented singer.

I had the opportunity to interview Dave Evans last week.

We talked about his past with AC/DC, as well as some the other bands he has been with over the years, and his current plans with his band, “The Badasses”. Check out the Podcast below for the interview! Just click on the link to listen!!

Rudy Sarzo joins BLUE ÖYSTER CULT as bassist for the balance of 2007. Former bassist with QUIET RIOT, OZZY OSBOURNE, WHITESNAKE and longtime friend of the band, Rudy will play until Ronnie James Dio returns from touring with HEAVEN AND HELL (Rudy is the current bassist in Ronnie’s band DIO).

Rudy and BLUE ÖYSTER CULT singer Eric Bloom have been friends since meeting up at “Hear ‘N Aid” in 1985. Eric says that “Buck and I are really happy to have Rudy playing bass with us. He’s a great fit and a great guy.”

Richie Castellano will continue handling the left side of the stage on keyboards, guitar and vocals.

A video clip of Sarzo handling bass guitar duties for BLUE ÖYSTER CULT’s April 28, 2007 concert at the Hawgs of Texas motorcycle rally in Lake Somerville, TX has been posted at “Burnin’ for You” at YouTube.

It is 66 days until the new release of the Nikki Sixx Soundtrack for his book, the Heroin Diaries.

Nikki Sixx has released the following video for the song, Life is Beautiful, in support of the up and coming soundtrack and book. His band Sixx A.M. features James Michael and DJ Ashba (Beautiful Creatures) as well, Check it out!

Sixx A.M. – Life is Beautiful

You can also check out this Ecard with an excerpt from the first Chapter of the book, the Heroin Diaries!

Fear No Evil is the third studio release by Slaughter, and also the band’s heaviest.

With the change in the music scene, Chrysalis Records didn’t want to release this disc. Slaughter eventually signed with CMC and released this disc on the new label. Sadly, after a double platinum and gold album, Slaughter found little success with Fear No Evil.

Amazingly, this is the hardest output by Slaughter, and one of the better releases of the band’s career. Lack of airplay, and a release that was in the middle of the Grunge era of rock, left Fear No Evil as one of the better unknown releases by the band. The heaviness of the tunes reminds of a Dana Strum and Marc Slaughter’s sound while they were in the Vinnie Vincent Invasion. Tim Kelly’s (R.I.P.) guitar playing on this disc is superb.He cuts loose more on this disc than on any other Slaughter release.

The highlights on this disc are Live Like There’s No Tomorrow, Get Used To It, Searchin’, Let the Good Times Roll, and Outta My Head.

Searchin’

Live Like There’s No Tomorrow

Let The Good Times Roll

Hopefully, when Slaughter takes the stage at the Rocklahoma Music Festival they will play some cuts off of Fear No Evil, but since these songs are the least known of the Slaughter tunes out there, I doubt you will hear any of these. You will at least get a double dose of guitarist Jeff Blando, and Dana Strum, as they are currently playing in Vince Neil’s band too!

If you are a fan of Slaughter, you need to pick up Fear No Evil. You won’t be disappointed.